Lost cause

Friday I was working the bar for a special event. Every year this prominent dance company holds a black-tie 500$-a-plate ball to raise funds.

I had to get there for 3:30. At 4, my phone wakes me up. Yeah… I managed to sleep till 4 pm. It’s all good, my friends are organizing the event and I know we’ll have plenty of time to set up. We’ve done this before.

I was with Mateo, an old partner from The Drinkery. He’s an awesome bartender, he has a great energy, he’s almost a legend in the city. And there was this hottie with us, with whom I’ve worked at another event a month ago. She’s a typical barmaid, somewhat superficial - she’s about to open her own tanning salon, but really nice and sweet.

It was pretty slow. It’s a very formal event, people go more naturally towards champagne and if they do go for a cocktail, chances are they’ll take it easy to stay sober.

But after the dinner, the dancers came to our bar to party. The girls are beautiful, ridiculously fit – and flexible – and the guys are gay… my kind of demographics!

The prettiest of them all, a tall blond, is at my bar ordering when some old soul song starts to play. I ask her if there’s a show going on – from where we are, we can’t see the main dining room, where the dancers had performed earlier.

Her: no. why?
Me: oh, cause your company used to do this amazing dance on this song, my favourite one actually. It was just a couple on stage… quite beautiful.
Her: Oh my god you’re right! How d’you even know that? Oh and this drink is amazing thanks!
Me: Though I do it very well, I don’t just bartend. I like other things in life.

My sister is a dancer and she used to go to the training camp this particular dance company hold every summer. She brought me to a few of their shows. I avoid mentioning it to the blond dancer so that she wonders if I just happen to know everything or if I’m a fan of their work.

My friend/former boss cuts my shift at half passed midnight so that I can come with him at the after party in a fancy restaurant not too far away. He lets Mateo and our busboy clean and pack up everything. I feel bad, but it’s not like I asked for it.

Over there, I start talking with this cute girl that was jokingly complaining at the party earlier cause we had run out of Red Bull. She’s kind of a shy girl, works a lot, obviously not used to the whole bar environment. She seems a little bit intimidated by the way I flirt with her, but she also seems to like it. It’s playful, I tease her a lot.

Yeah she’s definitely enjoying this, but her friends and even her brother are right there around her. It’s also apparent that I’m a good 5 years younger. This is a lost cause, for tonight at least. She could never leave with the bartender she just met, like that, in front of her friends. Actually, I don’t think this kind of girl can even imagine this happening.

Oh well, that was fun anyways.